Questioning the pay gap in professional golf

A post last week from Golf Digest got golf fans talking about the massive pay discrepancy between World Number 1s Nelly Korda and Scottie Scheffler. As you can see, the post showed a direct comparison of their 2024 seasons. The most noticeable gap being the 85% difference in official prize money won.

Scheffler did play three more events and make six more cuts than Korda, but even with that taken into consideration, the difference in earnings would still have been considerable.

The online discussion that ensued saw many of the arguments justifying why men get paid exponentially more for doing exactly the same job. The main takeaways being, more fans, more media coverage and more investment.

With the focus being on the pay gap, the only takeaway you would have is that women professionals are hard done by. Although I agree that this gap needs to be closed and I hope for parity one day, what a lot of people failed to notice or even know is that the LPGA has grown its prize funds exponentially over the last four years.

LPGA Prize money increases

So whilst Nelly pocketing $4.4 million may seem like she has been short changed, she’s actually in a much better position than she would have been just a few years ago. As we head into the 2025 LPGA season, the players will be playing for a total prize fund of more than $131 million which is nearly 90% more than 2021.

Topping the LPGA money list in 2024 was Jeeno Thitikul with $6 million, a 71% increase on 2021 money list winner Jin Young Ko ($3.5 million) and this year 34 players won over $1 million in prize money, up for just 15 in 2021.

What is even more impressive about these figures is that these have been achieved despite so many of the odds being stacked against female pro golfers:

• Lack of media coverage
• Lack of and poorer quality broadcast coverage
• Less investment
• Less marketing spend
• Less commercial value

Vicious cycle of investment in women's golf

All of the above leads to a smaller fan base and smaller audience compared to the men’s game (see the argument at the start) and the vicious cycle of needing investment to grow but not being able to give a massive (or any return) on that investment making it a harder sell to investors/sponsors continues.

For the small minority of organisations that do invest heavily in women’s golf, they’re doing so for reasons beyond a return on investment. This was emphasised in a BBC report in 2021 when Craig Annis, the USGA's chief brand officer at the time, said the organisation was "committed to gender equality in golf".

"The U.S. Women's Open is the leader in purse in all of women's golf, which requires disproportional investments into the championship compared to revenue generated," he said.

"We will continue to make investments that ensure the U.S. Women's Open remains the premier event in women's golf through its purse, broadcast, host sites and player experience, as we drive toward the ultimate goal of purse parity."

I’d also argue that the investment in men’s golf is often disproportionate to the return but with men’s golf being so much more established the risk is less.

A new Commissioner for the LPGA

I say all of this as news broke yesterday that LPGA Commissioner Mollie Marcoux Samaan is stepping down 18 months before the end of her contract. Mike Whan’s shoes were always going to be big to fill but some will say that the LPGA would be in an even more buoyant state had she been a stronger leader.

Two things in particular come to mind, not capitalising on the fallout in men’s golf when LIV Golf come on the scene, plus improving the broadcast product to engage better with the golf fans. And then there's slow play zzz.

But even if the LPGA, under Samaan over the last three and half years, had grasped more opportunities and driven more change, it’s hard to believe that prize funds could be much higher at this stage.

So whilst there is still so much work to do as we look to close that pay gap, let’s not forget where the women’s game has come from, how much has been achieved so far and the unbelievable potential that’s there to continue to grow exponentially in the years to come (even when the odds are often stacked against them).

What are your thoughts? Let me know [email protected]